


Jet Lag

by Punkart



Category: Tales of Arcadia (Cartoons), Trollhunters - Daniel Kraus & Guillermo del Toro
Genre: 3Below (Tales of Arcadia) - Freeform, A Little Angst...As a Treat, Background Relationships, Communication, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Found Family, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, M/M, Men Seeking Therapy, Men Talking About Their Feelings, Mutual Pining, Past Abuse, Post-Canon, Steli Week 2020, Texting, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Wizards (Tales of Arcadia) - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:53:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26643307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Punkart/pseuds/Punkart
Summary: After returning to present-day Arcadia, and processing the events that followed, our blonde, floppy-haired, Knight of the Round Table does some serious soul searching. Leading him to have a serious sit-down conversation or two with his step dad. Over on Akiridion-5, Earth's greatest ambassador starts to feel the weight of his responsibilities. Turns out, speaking about the subject of what makes home great, makes you realize why you miss it so much.
Relationships: Seamus Johnson/Krel Tarron, Steve Palchuk & Aja Tarron, Steve Palchuk/Eli Pepperjack
Comments: 14
Kudos: 40





	1. Hey There, Leslie

**Author's Note:**

> More tags then usual, sorry about that. Look at me using some of the same tropes as my other work :/
> 
> SPOILER WARNING for WIZARDS! Would put this in the tags but it has been a minute since the show aired.

Palchuck was finally coming down from the adrenaline rush of the past few minutes. One friend was back to human, one was back to breathing, and they had all managed to destroy some of the worst villains ever thrown at them. It was wild how, because of the time travel, almost a week of adventure and battle had only taken up the first two days of summer break. The worst and best things to make their vacation great had happened within the span of forty-eight hours, and as the sun arose over the valley, and he watched Hisirdoux's ship sail past the treetops, a pit dropped in his stomach.

Toby had his best friend back, he wouldn't want to waste time with his ex-bully now. Claire and Aaarrrgghh would be in the same boat, wanting to catch him up on school work and happenings around Arcadia since he's been gone. He knew he couldn't help Jim with any of that smart stuff, and he had grown enough in the past few months to know he didn't want to try and pull Excalibur from its stone. So as his four friends giggled and chattered over each other, the homecoming king quietly walked out of the picture, knowing no one here would question his absence.

He didn't stop walking, side stepping through bushes and gingerly sauntering down slopes, climbing over rubble as it blocked the road, now common scenery in the small, magical town. His feet never paused, shucking off his armor from 900 years ago as he trudged up the stairs and down the hall, until he reached the office door in his own house, knocking to make sure the big man had made it home alright.

"Come in!" Came a hearty voice, cueing the teenage boy to push into the room.

"Hey, Coach." His voice came out timid as he walked around the chair facing the desk, and sat down.

"Hey, Champ! How ya holding up? Was worried you got caught up in that flying doomsday ship nonsense, with your whole… hunting thing, and all."

"I was, um, in the middle of it. But, I'm okay! Um, I was with a bunch of powerful people and I got some knight training from one of the most famous fighters in history, so I had back up. And for now it's all going to be calm for awhile." The Coach raised his eyebrows, obviously this was not the conversation he was expecting. He looked over the kid in front of him and seemed to decide he was unharmed.

"Well, then I guess I'm proud of you? If you know more about this world ending business than me, what can I help you with?"

"Um, I thought I'd take the time to actually explain to you what has been going on? Why I've been acting the way I have, and why other people have been acting strange. And I know...you know about the trolls like the rest of the town but there is a whole world of other... stuff out there and the way things are heading, we are going to have to have as many people in Arcadia prepared as possible… so I'm telling you everything." The Coach's eyebrows rose even higher, blinking at the teen. Their conversations were always awkward and tense, but right now his step-dad was the only friend he could talk to, and with not knowing how much time they had before yet another apocalypse hit, they had to get it all out on the table.

"Alright, Palchuck! I'll try not to lose my head about what you're about to tell me. Y'know 'cause the last thing we need is to start a panic. But I'm pretty sure you and those other kids have been saving lives while the rest of us were sleeping, so lay it on me!"

And he did. Almost everything. From his bullying in the past, to finding a goblin in the garage, to asking Eli for help and becoming best friends. And when he felt like he was talking about Eli too much he spilled his guts about Aja and how they met and continued to meet until he found out she was alie- Akiridion warrior queen, and became his girlfriend now peacefully ruling on her home planet. How he had just spent a week in ancient Camelot training with The Sir Lancelot, and fighting trolls and wizards of the past. And how it all just might end soon if The Arcane Order were to ever get their hands on nice little Nari and her magic.

As promised, Coach never showed any signs of panic, but simply nodded to indicate he understood, raised his eyebrows when something started to click, and asked questions about where and when these things happened in relation to events in his own memory.

They spoke for hours, the sun rising high in the sky. School was obviously canceled, so there was no reason to pay attention to the clock until someone's stomach rumbled and they both sauntered down the stairs for a late lunch. Thankfully Coach didn't have any questions about the metal suit strewn about the place, only mumbling for it to be cleaned up before his mother got home.

It wasn't until they both sat at the kitchen table eating sandwiches that Coach looked at the young man across from him with a slightly worried expression.

"So Pepperjack is Earth's ambassador, which means your best friend _ and  _ your girlfriend are both on another planet, huh?"

"Yeah, they love him over there. He's like a celebrity or something." He replied, only looking at his food.

"Do you have a way to contact them? I expect the long range phone calls would be expensive."

"Krel is working on it. But he can't do much since his house was destroyed and he hadn't been able to fix Mom and Dad yet. So he's been staying at Toby's and fixing it all piece by piece. He's getting lots of extra help from Seamus."

Coach hummed, rubbing his chin. "Well! Let me know when that's all sorted out. I wouldn't want you separated from those closest to you for too long. And know that you can talk to me about  _ literally _ anything. I hope I've at least proven that."

"Of course Coach Dad. I know"

They spent the rest of the afternoon talking about little things, like feelings or the different schools of magic. Palchuck decided to head to bed early. Staring at the ceiling fully dressed. He had gotten a couple texts from Toby asking where he disappeared to, and answered with the usual obnoxious excuse. Laying his phone on his chest, he couldn't help but worry if his friends were alright out on Akiridion-5. He thought of texting Krel and asking how the repairs are coming. But didn't want to overcompensate for something. He felt like he was always overcompensating. He felt bad for the way he treated Eli so now he did whatever the little twerp asked. He felt bad for the way he always had to be in the spotlight so he made his creepslaying a secret. And he didn't know how to feel about his closeness with Eli so he let himself dive headfirst into a relationship with Aja. But unfortunately Eli was the voice of his conscience now, his impulse control. Whenever he felt himself questioning his own actions, it was in that squeaky nerd voice with glasses. And now, simply because he was lonely, he overcompensated by thinking of nothing but Eli. He felt the bed’s comforter under his fingertips. No, in this room it was Leslie. Not in the snarky teasing tone he had used the first time he had heard the nerd's middle name, but as an inside joke, a secret. Now that he thought of it their entire friendship was built on secrets. Some were bad secrets, like himself being a bully, or hiding the fact that they were now friends. But the others were the best kind, like the name Leslie, or fighting evil in the dark of night. The best kind of secrets are the ones you can share.

As if reading his mind, the phone in his hand lit up. Blinking at it in the dim light, he opened the text from an unknown number.

**"Sister and the pepperjack asked me to forward this to you. Space invasion took out essential satellites. Will have a way for them to contact you directly soon."**

Palchuck sat straight up in bed. Ignoring the distracted message from an engineer that was obviously busy, and the fact that this super genius somehow had his number, he clicked the link that quickly followed Krel's text. 

It was a teaser trailer. They were making the Gun Robots movies into a cartoon series. The details were amazing and obviously animated with love and care for the characters. The lighting was beautiful, and even Steve could tell by the cast list that a lot of money had been put into the project. No explanation followed the link, but for once he didn't need one. He had started watching Gun Robots because of Eli, and had binge watched the ridiculous movie series with Aja during their dates that didn't include intergalactic assassins trying to kill her. Wherever they were, however they saw this, they had thought of him. And after putting the phone number under Krel in his contacts, it was that thought that put him to sleep.

The next day mostly consisted of homework and helping Coach assess the damage to the school. That evening Coach announced that the school would be up by the end of the summer, or else the teachers would find a way to hold classes off campus. With the danger gone there was no need to have a trollhunter meeting, but Aaarrrgghh helped Steve get some training in to let his restless energy out. By the time he hit his pillow that night he was out with the lamp light. But a few hours later, in the dark, he awoke to his phone letting out a ding.

Clumsy and half asleep he fumbled around for what he thought was another message from Krel. But Krel's number was already in his phone, and as he blinked at the screen, it yet again read as "Unknown".

" **Can now have short texts. Krel got bad connection. Be better soon. -Eli** "

For the second night in a row, he was suddenly wide awake. He found himself staring at the numbers along the top of his screen for a good five minutes before adding them under "Space Eli", and hovering his thumbs over the keyboard.

If he had access to a longer message, his nerves most likely would have taken over, but he forced himself to send a quick " **Understood, u ok** ?"

A heartstopping pause and then…

" **I'm good. Best Earth Ambassador. Text can only be 15 words. Busy Aja says hi** ."

He smiled. This was a conversation he would be able to manage. He knew he wasn't the smartest person, but leave it to Leslie to interpret his thoughts from a measly fifteen words. He sat up and hunched over in bed.

" **How bad will this long distance texting cost? ;)** "

A long pause.

" **Covered by royal funds! Heard about Camelot. How was it** ?"

Damn it, he wanted to be the one to gush about time travel. Guess Krel beat him to it, seeing as the first person he would tell about his invention of a magical, technological time trap would be his sister.

" **Made magic lady friends. Trained with Lancelot. King Auther was a buttsnack** ."

Usually he wouldn't speak ill of the dead. But after Claire explained what they put Jim through, that old dude was officially on his shit list.

" **Then it seems he was in good company ;)** ."

Steve chuckled in the dark. It began to look tedious to talk in such short sentences. All he wanted to do was tell Eli every little detail. Every instance that made him want his best friend and the other half of creepslayerz by his side.

" **Keep slaying as ambassador. I know you're great at it. That smart stuff** ."

Very long pause. At first he was worried he had sent something wrong, or the connection had broken. But he knew if Krel and Eli were maning the line, he wouldn't have to worry. He almost fell asleep again before another blip caught his attention.

" **Don't get too sappy while I'm gone** ."

It was obviously meant to be a joke. But Steve hastily replied with something about it being three in the morning here, before turning over in bed and staring at the wall. He heard a blip for a goodnight text, but did not fall asleep for several hours.

Over the next few days, they were able to get the highlights of their time apart sent through the janky texting system. Apparently Akiridion engineers had already been working on an entirely new communication system so that they could contact phones on Earth in an emergency. Using unclaimed Earth phone numbers, Eli was able to contact Steve's number through the new machine. And being the first to use it successfully, they had named it The Pepperjack.

Eventually Aja was able to pop in on a different number and exchange pleasantries with her brother and her boyfriend, but the democratic queen's duties always dragged her away. He understood of course seeing as she was a super cool ninja-kicking angel, but he couldn't help feel as if the rest of their relationship would be just like this. He couldn't leave his family here on Earth for more than a summer, especially now that the world might end. And Akiridions would be dumber than he thought if they didn't vote her in as their official leader. That was her home. And Earth was his. And they would always be best friends, but…

Weeks passed. It was now well into July when the summer school homework cloud of doom in Steve's room was not interrupted but a text, but by Krel himself bursting through his bedroom door. He was carrying a machine that Steve only recognized from his tour of Aja's house as a mini wormhole. And was immediately interested because if he interpreted the smart stuff correctly, it was like the big one they had used to get people to and from Akiridion-5.

"Turn on your primitive human laptop." Demanded Krel and he walked into the room without invitation. He knew at this point Krel was joking about human tech but it still stung as he grudgingly stepped over to his desk and faced the screen toward the Latino king. The teen dropped his human disguise to better access the computer's keyboard and plug in some sort of thumb drive. A block of code popped up and Krel's four hands immediately got to work. After a couple minutes of silence only awkward to Steve, the small wormhole machine let out a noise.

"Do you want me to explain what I just did or do you just want to use my brain to talk to my sister?" Krel said, folding both sets of arms.

"I'm hoping it means you put Wi-Fi in the wormhole thingy so we can talk to people on your planet better." Steve replied with a straight face. Krel gawked for a second before rubbing his forehead.

"Wha-...you know what? Sure! Yeah, that's exactly what I did. Enjoy." He pressed the enter key on the laptop. A site with a glowing blue "A5" appeared on the screen. "You ever want to talk to them, just use this. I now only have two of these, so don't break it." He patted the top of the wormhole generator before waving and leaving the room.

Palchuck sat down at the desk. Staring blankly at the loading symbol below the A5. Suddenly, Aja and Eli's faces appeared on screen, waving and talking over each other in some sort of tech jargon.

"Hello! Can you hear us?" Aja yelled through the speaker. Steve nodded dumbly before realizing he should answer.

"Can you see me?"

"Yes, we can!" They replied in unison, and he felt his heart skip. 

"We wanted to surprise you, so sorry for not sending a warning about Krel." Said Eli. And oh, he hadn't realized how much he had missed that squeaky voice. "Hope this is a good time?"

"It's a great time! Since the school was destroyed and I still have summer school, I literally can't get any time away from Coach. Love the guy, but a 24/7 threat of push-ups is even too much for me." The two chuckled, the screen twitched.

"Well, I wanted to be here when we  _ 'made first contact' _ " Aja tried to make air quotations. "And I hate to leave so soon after seeing your face. But I do still have duties to fulfill. General Morando left a huge mess and a terrified planet for me to help clean up. Hopefully when we are back on our feet, I will be able to sit down with you for more than a couple minutes." 

"That is totally okay!" He waved off the smiling queen. "I know it must be busy there after the coup, or whatever. I'm just glad you had time to check in and take a break! I'm fine with waiting until you have time." Aja smiled more broadly, talking even as she slowly edged herself out of frame.

"Alright my big blonde oaf, I will make sure to talk as soon as I can! Stay lively!" Soon it was just her hand waving, and then she was gone. 

Eli centered himself into frame, looking a little bashful for being near the couple's conversation.

"Uh… so we were able to attach a screen to the machine that was letting us text. We can send longer messages now as well as facetime if you want. But this way I can introduce you to the people on the engineering team, the people helping me with ambassador duties, and the royal servants that were leading the rebellion back here on Akiridion while you and I were still fighting goblins. They are all so cool and have all these gadgets for spy stuff and every day I wake up and feel like I'm in a sci-fi movie. I gotta pinch myself just to remind myself it's real. And talking about Earth isn't hard. I mean of course I've had to talk to them about the bad stuff but they just had a coup so they understand. But the nice things come so easy, I'm already homesick even though I know I don't want to leave anytime soon. And-"

Palchuck listened to his best friend prattle on. Nodding and smiling when the moment called for it. And he truly did try to pay attention to what the nerd was saying. But he couldn't help but realize that Leslie was living up to his full potential, here on this alien planet. And wondering, what if he had simply stopped being such an obstacle in this boy's life? Would he have been this happy sooner? 

He pulled himself out of those dark thoughts silently, continuing to smile at Eli's explanation of coming home at the end of the summer. He retracted the hand he felt rubbing at  _ that _ spot on his shoulder. Writing something down on a sticky note so he would remember to talk to Coach about it later.

They talked forever, into the late hours of the night, for most days when they had time between homework and ambassador duties. Every once in a while Aja would pop her head in to say hi before being pulled off to another reconstruction mission. Apparently Eli did the same thing to her calls with Krel, so they were even. But he could help but voice his concerns about the girlfriend queen to his best friend Leslie. He tried not to do it often, or abruptly, just a simple 'how is she doing' before continuing their conversation about how excited they were for the Gun Robots show, or some new alien tech.

Everything went smoothly until half way into August, when Aja asked to bump into the call and didn't leave. After some light conversation, she whispered something to Eli and the boy gave a quick "Be right back!" Before leaving the call, also leaving the couple sitting bolt upright at each other over the hazy blue-hued screen.

"I think we need to talk-" 

"I know." Palchuck interjected. He didn't mean to be abrupt, but he didn't want to have his nerves get ahold of him before anything serious could be said. And by the kind smile on the Akiridion queen's face, she understood him perfectly.

"I have been going over and over how this conversation would go in my head for almost a week now." She explained, looking at the four hands in her lap. "I knew you would be smart enough to understand it too, but I wanted to be the first to say something, so you don't feel like it's your fault." The boy didn't reply, that's exactly what he would have done if he had gotten up the nerve before her. "First, let me say that I will not be returning with Eli Pepperjack at the end of the summer. If the Earth needs assistance in the fight against the Arcane Order, you have my word we will be the first to send reinforcements. But I cannot go back to something so comfortable as  _ 'high school' _ when my country is without help of its own."

"Yeah, I thought as much. You're an amazing kick-butt queen, and even with an election, your people love you. They'd be mind controlled to not pick you to continue leading them." A small smile.

"That would mean that secondly, for us to be together like we used to, it would have to include leaving one of our homes, and with both our situations, with our families where they are, I can't allow either of us to do that."

"I agree." 

"So…" Aja put her head in her hands. "We will always be the bestest of friends, right?" And Palchuck could only remember her voice being that watery when she spoke of her home being destroyed.

"Of course, always." He said quietly, letting the queen catch her breath.

"Is there… is there anything that humans do to make a break up official? There is no ceremony listed in the book my advisor gave me on human culture."

"I think acknowledging that this is a break up is the only real thing people do… so…"

"This is terrible, the only person I would talk to about these things are my mother… and...and you."

"We can still talk about it, as best friends. And in the future I want to hear all about the Akiridion oafs you end up liking so I can judge them from afar." That made the blue girl giggle, wiping her eyes. The conversation stayed sorrow until her tears were dried and Eli re-entered the room. For the first time since the day the two left, they had a long conversation about what was going on with the three of them.  _ Almost _ every little thing. Steve had not had many break-ups, maybe this was officially his first, but he couldn't help like it was the most bitter sweet. He was now best friends, only best friends, with an extra terrestrial queen.

The rest of his summer went by in a dull fog, the days blended together. No monster attacks, no Arcane Order threats, no kidnappings, or shape-shifted friends. Just homework and blazing heat on the patio of a restaurant that Douxie didn't even work at anymore. It wasn't until he was heading toward the middle of town in the blistering September afternoon, when he got a text from Krel, simply stating-

" **Big wormhole machine broke, won't be able to get them home tomorrow. Will have it fixed by the first day of school. Sorry you'll have to wait** ."

Of course the machine was broken. The heat made everything worse. He was just about to send back a passive aggressive answer on his way to help fix it whichever way he could, when he heard quick footsteps approaching from behind. Footsteps he was going to ignore as he started to text a frowny face, but then the running steps were accompanied by the world's most beautiful squeaky pubescent voice, shouting the only thing he wanted to hear right now.

  
" _Creee_ eeeeEEEEE **EEEEP** **_SLAYERZ_**!"


	2. Unfamiliar Ground

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eli's POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY got chapter two done. My schedule has been kind of exhausting. First I started DMing for a DnD campaign, and then I got a part time job. Hopefully the final chapter will be finished sooner than this :')

**~Three Months Ago~**

He wasn’t the only Earthling visiting Akiridion-5; the invasion seemed to have attracted more Arcadian tourists. As Eli stepped through the portal, onto another planet for the first time, the first thing he noticed was an almost obnoxious amount of blue. As someone from a green planet, it was slightly strenuous on the eyes, like staring at a screen for too long. Any humans stepping through the portal were given special goggles to prevent migraines. Which made both Eli and Seamus look absolutely ridiculous. The two highest grades in their class besides Krel and they both were floored by the technology and architecture of their new surroundings. All while sporting dark, bulky headgear over their eyes.

Seamus was only to spend a day on this planet before attending Space Camp later that summer, but as they walked around, his face lighting up at every new discovery, anyone could tell he would have a hard time leaving by the time the sun rose again on Arcadia. They both couldn’t help themselves as they asked questions about every tool, vehicle, and machine they passed. Walking along the hallways of the palace, they spotted damage from the coup being mended via hover board and force field. 

"If my dad saw this, he would have a stroke!" Said Seamus as he sidled up to Eli. He was supposed to be walking with the other one-day tourists, but had been particularly clingy after being assigned roommates with Eli. Aja thought it would be less of a shock if Eli spent his first morning on a different planet waking up with other humans, but…

"You have literally never spoken to me outside of school." Eli said, exasperated. And Seamus nodded solemnly, his excitement extinguished.

"I know. I'm...I'm sorry for the way you were treated. I mean… in general but also by me specifically."

"It's not really about the way you treated me, it's more about the way you stood around and encouraged it." Seamus winced, nodding again.

"I know...and...I'm trying to be better. Between Steve leaving the group and becoming your personal bodyguard, and Krel helping me stay on the path to Space Camp, I've kinda been shaken out of something. I don't know what it was but I realized I was being a real jerk, and even worse I thought it was normal. So I wanted to say I'm sorry, and maybe try to start making up for it on this trip, if that's okay with you?"

Eli squinted. Between his studying with the trolls, and Steve keeping a distance between him and other bullies, he had gotten better at telling when someone was messing with him. He stayed quiet as they walked through an open-air hallway.

"We can try." He finally mumbled, and Seamus gave a relieved breath and smiled as they walked into what looked like a ballroom with a ginormous table in the middle. Eli and the guests sat around it in geometric shaped chairs.

Their bags had been whisked away to their rooms at the gate by the same servants that now placed dishes of exotic food in front of them. Most of Eli's bags would be placed in the Ambassador's Suite, where he wouldn't see them until at least tomorrow afternoon. Which didn't concern him half as much as the blue and purple vegetables on his plate, as they sat beside a large, bright violet clam. Aja had assured him that all parasites on Akiridion-5 were energy based like the people and wouldn't be interested in anything other than electronics. But Eli wondered what nutritional value an energy based plant would have to an organic consumer. 

He turned to his left to make a joke about this, out of habit, but was met with only the questioning gaze of Nomura, who had decided to join the group. Eli quickly looked back at his meal, finding it strange that his best friend wasn't here to make fun of the food with him. Man, that habit was going to suck real fast.

As if reading his thoughts, the person to his right nudged him in the arm.

"Can I ask you a personal question?" Asked Seamus when he looked up.

"Uh….suuuure."

"How...do you and Steve... _ work _ ? I mean I know he didn't dish out any of the blows but...um… What made you decide to be his friend? I mean you could have just left him in the dirt for the shit he pulled." Eli put a steamed purple root vegetable in his mouth, thinking. It tasted like a penny.

"I guess, it's because he changed so quickly. I mean he had some habits to work on. But the second he needed my help he became understanding of my boundaries and never bragged about becoming a better person. He just asked if what he said or did was ok and made sure I wasn't hurt by his teasing or friendly shoulder punches." He picked at what tasted like a blue sweet potato with his cyber spork. "Even after everything was out in the open about the trolls and us being friends...he never apologized out loud so much as...making sure something like that never happened to me again. Not that he would ever admit it. I mean, he said we had to pretend to still be the bully and victim to keep our cover but it wasn't even a weekend before he was openly showing affection and watching my back, heh."

He looked back over at Seamus, and was taken aback. The Irish teen was staring at the shaking hands in his lap, with rivers of tears running down his face. Eli hesitantly hovered his hands in the air, worried that contact with the boy's shoulder would make it worse. He settled for one hand resting on his upper back, looking around to make sure no one was noticing the waterworks.

"I was so terrible to Krel." Seamus sniffled. "All he wanted was to make friends and blend in and keep his family safe on an alien planet, and all I did was ruin the one thing people gave him credit for. And he still helped me by giving that up so I could go to stupid Space Camp." He put his head in his hands, furiously pressing his palms into his eyes. Eli finally reached out and gently pulled on his wrists before his eyes could bruise. He knew what the effects of a shitty father figure looked like by now.

"Hey, Krel is a cool guy. If he helped you get to Space Camp, I'm sure he's already forgiven you. Just try to help him make friends and adapt to Earth or whatever when you get back."

Seamus looked blearily over at Aja, sitting at the head of the table several seats down.

"What if she doesn't want me to? I mean, she almost punted Steve through a taco truck, and they hadn't even really met yet."

Eli giggled, prompting Seamus to do the same.

"I doubt she wants to control who her brother makes friends with back on Earth." Replied Eli, nodding toward the assortment of people Aja was sitting with. Seamus nodded in agreement, wiping his face.

The rest of the dinner became more comfortable. Mostly consisting of royal welcome toasts and the two human nerds speculating on how the shapeshifting buildings worked. They were all introduced to the heads of staff and several distant cousins of Aja, before escorted to their chambers. It was obvious the Akiridions wanted their guests to be at home, as while the same electric blue power grid pattern covered the walls and floor, the room looked like it was carved out of wood. As Eli stepped into the space, he was reminded of a log cabin, or more accurately with the tech lying around, a spy's safe house. The servants informed him that the Ambassador Suite would be similarly retrofitted for his convenience, but was much bigger, before leaving the two boys alone with their backpacks. Sitting on one of the twin beds, Eli could almost feel like he was still on Earth, if it weren't for the futuristic city glimpsed outside the window.

"Unreal…" Seamus whispered, pressing his face against the glass. They sat in silence for a good twenty minutes, just taking it all in, before returning to their dinner conversation where they left off.

"So!.... You and Palchuck…" Seamus said, sitting on the other bed and leaning back on his hands.

"Whaaaat about us?" Asked Eli.

"Well, he keeps saying he's dating Aja, but is that just a cover? Or…?" Seamus raised an eyebrow.

"You mean… are we dating? No! No… that's not a cover, we're just friends." 

"Oh! I'm so sorry. I just thought... because you were out… and he was so protective of you all of a sudden…"

"Well if you put it like tha- Wait… is that what you meant when you compared us to you and Krel?" Seamus blushed, his face placed back in his hands.

"No! I mean we're not… I wasn't gonna… I was just worried about patching things over, not- you just act like a couple, is all!" Seamus sputtered.

Eli thought for a moment, ignoring the exasperated noises from his temporary roommate, staring at the floor. After starting out on their Creepslayerz journey, Steve had become a new constant in Eli's life. He couldn't think of a recent memory where he second guessed himself, all because of the solid support that jock gave him, backing all his plays. The protectiveness had become genuinely affectionate over the past months, as opposed to the result of residual guilt. He didn't think Steve had had a friend who cared what he thought before Eli forgave him for all the lockers shut in his face. And now that he thought about it, Eli never had a friend so eager to hang out with him and listen to his ideas. It worried him, leaving that kind oaf of a homecoming king back on Earth. No one to snap him out of that dark look he got in his eyes when Eli could tell his thoughts were spiralling. He was going to have to find a way to contact him and do it himself remotely.

Speaking of snapping out of it, Eli looked back up at his space faring companion, just as Seamus was rambling off something about "not having a crush on him, just because Krel is so smart." And decided to help the poor guy.

"Why did you need to know how me and Steve work?" Eli asked.

"I just…" Seamus looked at the ceiling, distraught. "Obviously, the friends I had before were toxic and not really my friends and my father is never going to give me advice on how to be kind to "an illegal alien", so I'm just stuck in the middle trying to not screw this...whatever we have into an early grave."

Eli could understand that, he nodded, thinking back to the few moments when his and Palchuck's friendship wasn't revolving around the end of the world.

"Video games mostly," Eli started. Seamus looked up, a little shocked that he was going to help him. "And helping with homework, but it's summer so… music? Everyone agrees on music, even if it's different genres. You're really smart, you might be able to help him rebuild his house and robot parents. Um… like me and Steve, We like the same shows, I think I got him addicted to the Gun Robot movies, they're even having a- Oh!" Eli gasped, diving a hand into his bag for a marker and scribbling "Gun Robot Trailer" on his arm. Seamus looked bemused.

"Don't worry too much about impressions." Eli continued, dropping the marker back into his pack. "Friendship can't be forced, and every one of them has their own quirks. You two already have so much in common. You both like math and engineering. You're going to Space Camp and want to be an astronaut. He's from space! He can literally put you on a different planet if you wanted him to."

"Yeah, but Eli, isn't he like… really cool? I mean, once I knew who he was. His disguise was meant to make him invisible, but he's a DJ, and his capacity for science is beyond the human understanding of calculus. Not to mention he's, what, the king of an entire planet?"

"And he decided to stay on Earth, and he decided you deserve Space Camp, and you're coming out of an ignorance fog, realizing there's so much more in the universe than just being a bully and following orders." Eli added. Seamus blushed again, staring at his shoes. "And I think you realize there's a lot more to build there besides just "patching things over"."

"Thanks, Eli." Seamus spoke after a while. "I was actually kinda worried about talking to you. But thanks for not shutting me out. I know I would have deserved it."

"Being with Palchuck made me hope people could have a second chance again."

"Being with…?" Seamus raised an eyebrow, a small smirk.

"Stuff it." Eli threw his pillow at the other teen. Seamus threw it back. For the first time, both of them were smiling.

The two boys were up before most of the rest of the castle. Making a beeline for where the portal would open. Eli and Seamus awkwardly shook hands as Aja waited for the signal from her brother. When the gate finally swirled open, Eli caught his new acquaintance staring eagerly at the figure stepping through it. The royals hugged and Seamus mumbled something about talking on the other side before stepping through the wormhole, unnoticed by Krel.

Eli stepped up to the Akiridion, who still wore his camouflage, and pulled out his phone.

"Is my blond oaf with you?" Aja asked first. A little guilt sank in Eli's stomach, but he listened for the answer nonetheless.

"I have not seen the Palchuck, but I have my suspicions he was involved in that sky ship crash last night. No one was reported hurt!" Krel said quickly, seeing his sister's face. "But the school was destroyed and there is a giant skull machine thing floating on the outskirts of town."

Aja and Eli gaped. Looking down at his phone, he realized what he was about to ask sounded trivial and unimportant now. But then again they defeated a slime monster using a sack-of-flour baby, so what harm could it do?

"Well, if the world's gonna end again, would you mind getting this text to him when you have a chance? I forgot to talk to him about it after the invasion."

"It will be a while till I have the connection with Earth reestablished." Krel pointed out, taking the phone from Eli and sending the link to himself. "This might be the last time I have enough power to open the gate this wide until the end of the summer." He handed the phone back, it effectively made useless with the information he gave with it.

"Thanks…" Eli stared at the dark screen.

"Stay safe, little brother." Aja added, hugging Krel in his true form, before they waved him through the portal. "We have work to do." She added to Eli. He nodded, his brows furrowed, determined to distract them both from whatever was attacking Arcadia this time.

Weeks later, Eli fidgeted in front of a bulky Akiridion prototype. He had removed his goggles, as to not look silly on camera, his nerves getting the better of him. All he had been thinking about since his first full day on Akiridion-5 was the conversation between himself and Seamus, and the clarity of his feelings that followed. It was just a crush… on his best friend… but what was the big deal? It's normal to be a little sappy about your best friends. 

Texting was easy. It gives you time to hide your more embarrassing comments and never shows your true feelings. But what do you say to someone whose time traveled? Especially to your best friend after not seeing them for so long. It would be awkward, yet careful, no room for mistakes when you're talking in real time.

Eli took a deep breath as Aja sat beside him, staring at the searching A5 symbol. Taking off the goggles had already caused a headache to form, but he was too self conscious to put them back on. As he had worked with the Akiridions to build this machine, he found himself missing the little things. Every time an arm was thrown over his shoulder, he felt a split second of warmth, before realizing it was Aja. Every time he got a message, a dull ache crept into his chest. Even now, all he wanted was to hug the screen like a crazy person, if it meant he was a little closer to home.

He didn't of course, because Aja was there, and it was also her presence that kept him from showing how much he melted, as a familiar blonde with a crooked smile popped into view. 

Akiridion was much bigger than Earth, which ment time zone differences changed all the time. With eight extra hours in the day, it was easy to forget a human needs sleep, but every time Eli video chatted through space with his best friend, he became wide awake, like an energy drink. It didn't matter how boring or gloomy the topic (though it rarely came to that), Eli always felt his jaw unclench, and the knot of nerves in his stomach loosen when he was finished telling Palchuck about his day. Aja only interrupted occasionally and he didn't mind. They were dating and he was happy they were happy. Not to mention he did the same thing to her chats with Krel, checking in on his inventions and waving to Seamus who was usually in the background, tinkering with a piece of alien tech.

It wasn't until August that the dull ache became sharper. He would have thought he was having a heart attack, or a reaction to the high oxygen levels in the atmosphere, if it hadn't been for the phone in his hand, and the tears running down his face. It was an off handed comment. A worry. Sandwiched between several other unrelated worries. Just day to day anxiety. But for some reason, it set Eli off.

He stared down at the text on the screen, just a simple mention of maybe Aja losing interest in her Earthling boyfriend, followed by "idk, maybe it's just Bad Thoughts, y'know? Anyway..." He had sent back the usual reassurances, but this time something came bubbling up and spilled over. He took a shuddering breath that forced him to sit down on the sofa in his suite, rubbing the sore spot over his heart.

It wasn't that he was jealous, he wasn't that kind of person. And it wasn't that he might have kept his feelings to himself for nothing, knowing that his best friend was unhappy. No. It was the not being there, not being allowed to hold the soft guy and talk him through it, not being able to make it all better that tore him up inside. That made him realize this wasn't just a crush. And that realization is what made the pain worse.

When he finally got his breathing under control, he blinked through the tears, and sent a simple message to Seamus.

" **You were right** "

It wasn't immediately after the video call that Eli got the news. He had been allowed back into the room with Aja looking sad but not distraught. She had given him a small smile and an uncharacteristic hug, before they both sat back down in front of the screen. Even now after the whole summer, he couldn't bring himself to keep the eyewear on during their chats, no matter how much the muscle twitches behind his eye.

As the three of them had a deep conversation about politics and plans, Eli couldn't help but realize Aja was trying hard to keep it together, even after they left the call. He kept his emotions in check, but looked at her questioningly as she left the room. He wasn't an idiot, he knew what that look meant. He knew Mary, and that girl went through ten breakups a month. He looked at the dark screen of the prototype, trying to ignore the ache in his chest. He decided to wait a good half hour before sending an " **Is everything alright?** " Text to Steve, and eventually got the whole story that way.

And a new pattern developed; whenever they weren't using the prototype to video chat across worlds, they were texting about every little thing. What the new Gun Robots show was about, what new food Eli was eating, theories about when and how the Arcane Order would strike next, and how to prepare both planets for it. Eli knew it wouldn't cut into his ambassador duties, but as the summer was drawing to a close, he tried to disconnect himself from the job all the same. He needed the people here to realize he wouldn't be able to stay, and to his horror, he realized this was the first year he had ever waited till August to do his homework. Not to mention it was getting harder and harder to hide his homesickness.

And so he had made a plan. 

Getting Krel to send a false text was probably the hardest part, since the boy didn't understand why he would say his projections of the experiment had not gone perfectly! But with a nudge from Seamus on the other side of the camera, the young king obliged. 

The other problem would be to find Steve, in a town he had not been in for almost four months, before Steve found  _ him _ . 

As Eli slunk around Arcadia, slipping through alleys and cutting through restaurants, he couldn't help letting himself remember why he was hesitant to leave this place; the soft looks he got when the boy didn't think he was looking, the soft touches when the boy wasn't overthinking things, the crooked smiles and protective contact between their shoulders when they sat by each other without noticing. Soon it wasn't just the running around town that got his heart beating, and as he swung around a particular corner, he could swear it skipped a beat.

Standing in the middle of the empty road, the sun in his hair, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand and staring down at his phone, was Eli's best friend.

Not being able to string coherent words together, Eli settled for taking off at the jock via full sprint, yelling the only thing he knew would get the heatstroked boy's attention-

" _Creee_ eeeeEEEEE **EEEEP** **_SLAYERZ_**!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The third chapter will most likely be the longest, and where I store all my fluff


	3. It Starts With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING!: Mention of self harm, homophobia, and abuse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the longest it's taken me to finish writing anything, ever. Hope y'all have enjoyed, and come back next fic for my mental decline into madness
> 
> Wait it's just all fluff?   
> Always has been

The two young men wrapped their arms around each other. Eli, traveling at terminal velocity, gave his second the opportunity to lift him up and spin him around in the blaring sun. If this had been any town other than Arcadia, they may have attracted some pointed fingers and awkward stares, but in the city of trolls and aliens, no one thought twice of the two high school kids twirling in the middle of the street. 

As they slowed, Eli leaned back to look at his best friend, unable to keep the grin off his face. Almost three months spent away from the person who understood him the most had taken its toll. Only now that they were reunited, did he realize how high that toll had been. He hid it of course, which was easy since his blinding grin was genuinely reflected back at him from the face of the blond jock. But as his feet touched back down, and an arm was slung over his shoulders, he could finally admit he had been devastatingly homesick.

Steve led him across the street and into the nearest diner, explaining how surprised he had been. But Eli was distracted by the other boy's appearance. His face was sunburned, and he looked as if he had been running a mile in this heat. The amount of blood rushing to his face made him almost look purple. Eli realized he was dangerously dehydrated, and tried to usher his friend to a booth and ice water as quickly as possible. All while his partner chatted and smiled from ear to ear, oblivious to his condition. If he weren’t so concerned, Eli would have found it almost amusing how someone so obsessed with fitness and athletic activities, could completely ignore their own body’s limits.

As they sat in the air conditioned room, filling each other in on what had happened since their last video call, the waiter brought them their food and an extra pitcher of water.

"- and the school is almost completely rebuilt so we can start having classes inside again," Steve prattled on between bites of a burger, occasionally pausing only to chug from his water cup. "and Señor Uhl is going to have a program for juniors and seniors, about the study of myths and legends, so no one comes to town with misguided information on trolls and such. Coach Lawrence is going to arrange it so the program has special guests, like Blinky. And Toby and Jim already brought up the books they used in Troll Market, so we'll have lots of material to start with! It will be  _ so _ much better than history class!" He offered Eli one of his fries. And Eli, knowing how much food meant to the athlete, graciously accepted.

He hadn't realized how bright Earth's colors were, it's reds and yellows. His eyes were still adjusting back to the warm pallets of the old fashioned diner, and of the leaves outside, just starting to turn a pail gold. But it had always been this warm right? His eyes were just used to the oppressive blue light of Akiridion-5. There was no other logical reason for his hometown to look this...  _ vibrant _ all of a sudden.

"We gotta catch up with Gun Robots now that I'm back." Eli diverted his own attention, shuffling his fork through eggs and hashbrowns. "After I spend some time with my mom, of course. She doesn't know I'm back early either. That’s… going to take some serious time."

"Mm," Nodded Steve, taking a sip from the shake that had definitely been ordered by Eli. "I've kept in touch with her since all the  _ crazy _ died down. I mean since you and I had all those video calls, I just kept her informed on what was happening on Akiridion when you two hadn’t talked in awhile, she was definitely worried, Pepperbuddy." He gave an understanding smile.

Eli nodded this time. He had shared a call or two with her over the summer, and kept in touch via text, but he knew she never really believed him when he told her what he did for a job on another planet. He didn't blame her for wanting a second opinion from the only friend of Eli’s to ever be brought home. 

After they finished eating (Steve’s treat, seeing how Eli had no Earth money on him), they sat in the park, under the shade. Talking about what the gang had been up to, how many different alien species Eli now knew, what they were going to do about the incoming Arcane Order threat. But mostly they just talked about nothing, enjoying each other's company, recharging through touching shoulders and knees. Finally, they got up and said “Hi” to people Eli knew on the way out of town. He found it strange that such passive background characters of his life knew who he was and where he had been. Before now, he was only popular among the monster murdering freaky kids, and extraterrestrials. 

Steve dropped Eli off at home before heading to his own. Not once did Eli mention Aja. After hearing both sides of the story, it didn't really seem to be what was bothering the blonde oaf. But he  _ had  _ realized Steve stopped to say something several times, only to shake his head and smile, changing the subject, or moving on to the next activity. As he walked away from Eli's house, he promised to come over and hang tomorrow night, "after Mrs. Pepperjack had had  _ her  _ turn." Eli was forced to accept he had to wait, and braced himself for his mother’s warm reception.

Noting his mom’s parked car, and tentatively walking up the drive, he slowly pushed the front door open into the dim light of the living room lamps. His mom turned from the television, looking startled as someone entered her house without knocking, but quickly changed expression when she caught sight of her son. Jumping to her feet, and walking around the couch with her arms outstretched, she smiled.

Eli fell into his mother’s arms and sighed, hugging his mother back tightly. As much as exploring the universe called to him, as much as meeting alien species had lured him away from his planet, he couldn’t deny he had missed the comfort of his own home.

“I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow!” His mother exclaimed, kissing the top of his head. “You look nothing but skin and bones! Have those royals been feeding you?” Eli tried to answer but knew it was futile as she led him to the kitchen table, not waiting for a reply. “Come I’ll make you something to stick to those ribs of yours.”

Eli slumped into a chair, letting his shoulders relax for the first time since he stepped back on Earth. Within a few minutes the kitchen was filled with the warm smells of steamed rice and his mom’s hardy kimchi stew.  _ Now you can’t get  _ that  _ on Akiridion-5! _ Eli thought, though he had taken a jar of it with him to share.

His mother sat down beside him, her own bowl full but not eating as her son started shoveling spoonful after spoonful of the first home cooked human meal he had had in months. When he scraped the bottom of the dish he politely wiped his face and sipped the banana milk his mother had offered. She silently pushed the other bowl of food towards him, and thanking her he started to eat more slowly. After a while they were able to talk about his trip, him answering to the best of his memory between bites. He knew she was probably still upset that he had decided to leave in the first place, but she didn’t voice it out loud. Keeping her face a calm mask of joy and concern.

It was almost always just the two of them, with his father traveling for work, but it was the normal he was glad to return to. He was a little shocked when she asked if he had a monster hunting meeting that night, but was happy to surprise her by wanting to finish watching the drama series she had been watching when he had walked in.

By the time he collapsed on his bed, he didn’t think he had ever been more exhausted. Making sure to reset his phone so it operated on Earth hours, he fell asleep the second his head landed on the pillow. The last thing to cross his mind was the excitement of being a creepslayer again.

Steve walked home in the cool summer evening. He was unable to keep the smile off his face as he listened to the crickets, kicked pebbles across the sidewalk, and felt his skin steam like the surrounding earth, relaxing after the torment of such a long, hot day. 

The streetlamps came on one by one as the sky above turned to a burnt purple. He found himself wondering why he had thought the stars looked so far away just days ago. Now, they shown through the gaps in the sky like glitter, as if someone had simply scattered them across Earth’s atmosphere, not billions of lightyears away.

He took a deep breath, hoping it would rain by tomorrow, so he could just stay inside with Eli. Seeing their friends in town had been great, but his best adventures with the nerd had always been when it was just the two of them. It had been strange not being a part of their little duo for so long… When had Eli become such a vital part of Steve’s life?

Walking through the front door of his own house, he waved to Coach, who was preoccupied with some sort of paperwork at the dinner table with Mrs. Palchuck. He thought about joining them before realizing he couldn’t eat anything at the moment, and headed up to bed.

Usually he would check the computer monitor for a call from Eli but now he just lay on his bed staring at the ceiling, an arm around the stuffed mole mascot given to him by Coach for a big win a million years ago. At first he had pretended it was stupid, even though all the other team members had been gifted one, Seamus had even admitted to hiding his own under his bed, but now the little crown on the purple creature’s head reminded him how far he’d come since being that pretentious bully fighting for everyone’s attention. Now all he wanted from others was not to see that look of fear he had passed on to them.

Turning his head toward the screen on his desk and seeing that little post-it note he had written not long ago, he had to force himself to come to terms with so many things. But tonight he knew Eli was safe back on Earth, at least for the time being, and he knew nothing had driven them apart over the summer that couldn’t be fixed with a Boys Night over with nerdy cartoons and a famous Palchuck nacho recipe. He held the plush tighter and soon drifted into dreams of yellow umbrellas, and sacks of flour with little smiles on them.

When Steve woke up, he first checked to make sure he wasn’t late, having forgotten to set an alarm on a Saturday. Then, seeing the thunderclouds rolling outside the window, could hardly keep himself from skipping down to the kitchen to make himself some breakfast. His headache from yesterday had dissipated as he chugged orange juice and toasted a bagel, which he nibbled on while opening the notes app on his phone.

He was determined to spend the day making Eli happy to be back on Earth, so onto the list went all the nerd’s favorite junk food, movies (including the new Gun Robots series), and local take-out. After texting him to set a time to head over, Steve head into town to pick everything up. By the time the designated 6 pm rolled around, he was dressed in his best shirt, fixed his hair as nice as it would flop, and hauled all the treats over to the Creepslayerz main base... Which coincidentally just happened to be Eli’s basement.

Depositing the goodies onto the coffee table between the rundown couch and the TV screen, Steve sat down, already being bombarded with more information about Akiridion-5, which Eli rambled on about as they set up what was to be an  _ epic  _ marathon. Steve listened to his tiny best friend with a grin. He had heard some of this over the many many video calls these past few months, but it was so much more satisfying to have Eli gush to him in person.

“I’m sorry, I know I’ve told you this story already,” Eli paused, noticing his friend’s aloofness. “It’s just when I was hanging out with my mom this morning, I remembered the details, and there are some things that she’ll listen to, but not really.... understand. You usually let me tell you  _ anything _ nowadays...so… I don’t know…”

“Hey, cheese slice, it’s okay! Weird far-fetched paranormal stuff is what you and I do. And I don’t really mind you talking… When you explain things, it actually makes sense to me. Which, not many things do.... It’s uh… it’s calming.” He stuffed a chunk of deep fried fish in his mouth to force himself to stop talking, hoping the dim light from the movie hid how much his face was burning.

Eli continued his ramble, seemingly unfazed by the beet red jock beside him, yet again. But Steve noticed how hollowed out Eli’s cheeks had gotten. How deep the circles under his eyes had become. He knew the guy had always spent all-nighters on one project or the other, he was the first to suggest taking a night shift so the trollhunters could rest, but Steve thought this was different. Upon looking closer, he realized Eli had been squinting. Before, he had thought it was the bright sun, but now with the rain pouring down outside, turning the sky a stormy, dark gray, he realized being on another planet with unnatural light and a ridiculous time table could really mess a kid up. He tried to keep the worry off his own face as he covertly offered Eli various bites of his own snacks to try, distracting the other boy by commenting on the show they had come together to catch up on.

After dating a literal queen from another planet, and fighting extra terrestrial villains, Steve was tempted to point out the flaws in the show. It’s hard to take a plot seriously when you’ve seen a UFO fight up close. He didn't bring it up however, not just for fear of sounding pompous, but also because if the kid who traveled through a wormhole just yesterday didn't have a problem with it, then neither did he. 

Eli started to nod off, resting his head on Steve's shoulder. He was so in awe of the fact that Eli felt safe enough with him to fall asleep next to him, after all they've been through. And considering the nerd’s condition, he decided not to wake the boy. Instead shifting for a comfortable position for his neck, so that he could catch a couple minutes rest as well. Making sure to pull down his shirt sleeve in order to cover his shoulder on Eli's side, Steve slowly relaxed his arm around the other boys shoulders, and joined his snoozing.

When Eli woke up the first time, the first thing he noticed was the absence of pillows, realizing he had fallen asleep on the basement couch (which wasn't unheard of for him, but certainly not expected). The second thing he noticed was the large, warm arm, tightly wrapped around his middle, protectively. And third, upon observing that the arm belonged to his best friend, Eli found a mop of blonde hair pressed between his own shoulder blades, breathing calmly.

Considering how their friendship had started, the two boys had never really needed to ask one another for permission. Steve's affectionate side was immediately encouraged on Eli's part, and Eli had the full support of a quarterback behind his own scrawny tantrums. He knew Steve would sincerely apologize if he found himself going over the line, now knowing how that affected other people, and always held himself accountable. But falling asleep on top of your "bro" after a few hours of happily coexisting was definitely new, and Eli, both exhausted and pleasantly surprised, decided it was a  _ nice  _ new. 

Bringing the large hand up to his chest, and wrapping his own arms around it, he quickly fell back into the first, truly peaceful sleep he had had in months.

When Steve woke up, he was unbelievably comfortable, squeezing the pillow at his side. The pillow gave a small, sleepy grunt before sighing back into its normal breathing pattern, bringing Steve to full attention.

Looking around, he found himself sandwiched between the lumpy backrest of an old familiar couch, and his best friend, and was currently enclosing the boy with both arms in an attempt to pull him closer. Eli's head was nestled in the crook of Steve's neck, his hands brought in between them, curling his body in toward the larger high school boy.

At some point during the night, Eli's glasses have been removed from his face and neatly folded on the coffee table, and the thin blanket, previously draped over the back of the old sofa, had now been draped over both of them. Had those two things been Eli? His mom? Steve tried to stay still through the shock of being so trusted in that moment, hoping the quick beating of his heart didn't wake the other boy up. It was unusual to be allowed such a closeness outside of Creepslayerz. Carefully removing his top arm from the pile, he checked the time on his phone. 4am. Both too late and too early to go home.

Careful not to shuffle Eli onto the floor, Steve slowly removed his other arm, backing away toward the other side of the couch. Once he was free, he put the blanket back over Eli, and then layering on top one of the sleeping bags they had neglected to use. Once he knew the smaller boy was properly warm without him, he changed into his own pajamas and slid into the remaining sleeping bag on the floor.

Steve knew he wasn't a genius, but thanks to his smart friends, he also knew he wasn't a complete idiot. As he lay there on his back, enjoying the calming sound of heavy rain on hot ground, and Eli's steady breathing, he knew he had feelings for his best friend. He knew Eli wouldn't think of him as gross, having been outed as gay back in middle school. He knew he wanted that special moment on the couch to be where he came out in return, and his feelings hopefully reciprocated. But he also knew there were some things he himself couldn't currently forgive, and he didn't want to pile that on top of whatever beautiful thing he grew with Eli. The nerd had been through enough because of him.

So going back into the notes of his phone, he made a new reminder, mirroring the sticky note he had written to himself a month ago. Determined to fix his own problems at least a little, before ever letting his true feelings show. He wasn't going to be  _ that guy _ . He had been raised by  _ that guy, _ and if he had learned anything since Coach had entered his life, it was to stop toxic cycles before they continued. He wasn't sure if he hadn't already passed that violence in his life onto Eli, but he sure as hell wasn't going back to his days as the thing holding people back. And as he lay there, deciding he quite liked thunderstorms all of a sudden, he stared at the ceiling of the basement, telling himself he was doing the right thing… hopefully. If it was what would make Eli the happiest, then that was good enough for him.

The second time Eli woke up wasn't even an hour later, although the rain was now a quiet drizzle and he felt how much cooler the basement had become since the start of their little slumber party. Reaching out, his hand felt the back of the sofa, and rolled over to see Steve lightly snoring on the other side of the room, his arms now wrapped tightly around a pillow. 

_ Well it was nice while it lasted. _ Thought Eli, remembering all the times the jock had become hyper aware of their intimacy and shied away. It was hard to imagine what had caused his shyness this time, since he had gotten better at showing affection in public, but he hoped the other boy knew it was okay to be so close, or at least didn't think of Eli as a "bro" anymore. Because the homecoming king, to Eli, had become so much more special than that.

Steve waited until the last minute of football practice, after school on Monday, to text Coach that he wanted to talk, knowing Coach would have to stay a bit longer to do paperwork and clean up equipment. This gave him the opportunity to walk the long way home, slowly taking his time to build up the courage needed for displaying your heart out (yet again) to one's stepdad. Halfway through, Coach texted back a short reply riddled with spelling errors, having used big thumbs on a touch screen keyboard, stating that he would be home in a few, about the time pizza would arrive. Satisfied, the teen put his phone in his pocket and enjoyed the sunshine, which was much less assaulting after such heavy storms.

When he got home he double checked that his mom was still on her afternoon shift at work. He loved her, but he would rather not have to walk her through some of the things Coach already knew, having known about Steve's school activities. He cleaned off the dining table, hoping Coach would explain things to her later, and quickly wrote down a short list of things he wanted to talk about. So if he got too nervous, the random words in his brain wouldn't distract him from the matters at hand. He then sat at the table, the list spread flat, and tried to calm his heart rate down.

Coach got there a few minutes after the pizza guy left. The two men working together to get soda and plates on the table and eating a few slices before the larger of the two even looked expectant of any conversation.

"So….. What do ya wanna talk about, kiddo? This isn't about that "end of the world battle" thing coming up, is it?" Coach chewed on a pizza crust.

"No, not this time. Although, I am going to have to ask you again, that you don't freak out… please."

Coach paused, the gears in his head visibly turning as he slowly put his food down, wiped his hands, and folded his arms onto the table, giving the teen his full attention.

"You know whatever it is, I'm here for you, champ. Alright?"

"I know, Coach. It's just… it might be… a lot."

"Well I'll try to help wherever I can. But you don't have to tell me anything you don't want to."

Steve huffed, looking up at the ceiling. This was maybe… too much support. How do you talk about bad things with someone so aggressively positive all the time? 

He decided to just start with the root of the problem, foregoing any awkward transition in conversation.

He rolled up the sleeve of his t-shirt, revealing thin pale lines crosshatched across his shoulder. Coach, not being an idiot, instantly recognized the raised scars usually seen, unfortunately, on some of his other students. He tentatively raised a hand and placed it on Steve's arm below the markings, trying to turn his look of shock into genuine concern. Steve looked down at the table.

"I haven't done it in a long while, and probably never will again, but… I looked up ways to, like, stop it, and this website said talking about it with someone helps, and I think mom would be too freaked out to listen…"

Coach gave a little nod, moving his hand to hold Steve's on top of the table.

"Well, that is a lot, kiddo. I'm glad you felt comfortable enough to tell me. Although I would probably suggest you also see a therapist for better solutions… they know more about this than me… If you're ok with me asking, do you know why you started?"

Steve's eyes began to well up. He had long gotten over his fear of looking weak, but he still hated the tears for obscuring his vision, and obstructing his throat, making it hard to speak. He sniffed.

"I… only did it once or twice, when my… dad was still living here. I had dislocated my knee during football… pretty… badly… and…" He wiped his face, huffing out a small sob, and Coach had him sip water to help breath better.

"It's ok, kiddo. Take your time. I remember that game actually, you were in a lot of pain." Steve nodded, taking another sip.

"I… he… he told me I couldn't handle it, that we lost the game because I wimped out… I don't know. I… I wanted to prove myself… him… wrong… I guess." Another sob, another sip. "I don't want to end up like him." He rushed the words out between hiccups. "I started again when Eli decided to be my friend." He gestured to the scars, rolling his sleeve back down. "I started to notice how much I scared people, how much he flinched when I talked too loud, or… or leaned in to ask something… I hated myself for ever being like  _ him _ … I didn't understand why nobody... hated… me… for being such… a jerk!" Another sip. Coach squeezed the boy's hand. "I made his life a living hell and he's just… my friend now? I thought I deserved... worse."

"Is this when…? What exactly happened with Eli and your friends?" Steve cringed at the mention of those assholes.

"Everyone knew he was gay by the time we got to high school, when my dad got wind of it, he was… very vocal on what he wanted me to do about it. But since it was a hate crime then, and the school was more strict about it, it was all just talk. So when… Eli started talking about aliens and monsters, and sounding crazy... at the time, he… became fair game. Not many people liked what he had to say… anyway. I never hit him, but that doesn't mean he wasn't hit, and I definitely didn't stop it." He drank the rest of the water, sighing.

"Palch- Steve- kid, I know you really messed up back then, but from what I hear and see, Eli not only forgives you, you've become his best friend. And because you're there, no one messes with him anymore. You don't have to punish yourself, as long as you accept the consequences as they come, and work the rest of the time to be a better person."

"I know that… logically I know that… but that's not what my brain tells me… it’s like it wants to show me all the stupid ways I messed up like a silent film or something, all flashing all at once and in different directions sometimes."

"That sounds like ADHD…"

"What?"

"Another thing to talk to the therapist about. Thing is, it's normal."

"Oh, right." He had calmed down some, getting this off his chest, and if he was honest, he felt like he just sprinted a marathon.

"Was that it?" Coach asked after a moment, and then more quickly, at the sight of the confused teenager. "I mean you were right, that  _ is  _ a lot, but uh, is there anything else you need help with?"

"Uh… no… not that I can think of." Coach gave him a questioning look, grumbling.

"This definitely was  _ not _ the conversation I thought we were going to have. But I'm glad we had it."

"What conversation did you think it was?" 

"Ah, it's nothing." Coach waved it off, before Steve gave a little gasp.

"Oh!... Seamus came out to you recently, didn't he?"

"You and Seamus are on speaking terms?"

"Yeah, well… he thought I was dating Eli so he was asking for advice on how to be a better person, and dating tips, but since I'm not really good at any of those things, we settled for patching things up and being friends again….. I… was going to come out to you too, but I have no clue what I am… so..."

Coach raised his eyebrows.

"Well I'm glad you trust me with that, kiddo, let me know when you're ready. I can at least fully support you on that subject."

"Thanks, Coach Dad." Steve smiled, wiping his face a final time. Getting up to hug it out.

They finished their pizza in silence, eventually going on to talk about lighter subjects. When Mrs. Palchuck got home, Coach simply told her they had saved her a slice. Steve knew he would tell his mom later when Steve wasn’t around to feel embarrassed, but he didn’t mind. It was one less awkward conversation he had to participate in.

A few days later, Coach led Steve to the counseling office after school, to try and find him a therapist, and giving him confidence that things were going to be okay.

Unfortunately, he still had ultra powerful beings threatening the safety of the planet, but he could only control how he spent his time until then. So he decided to tell Eli everything.

He asked Eli during class on the lawn, to come out to the look-out point on the edge of town with him. The Guardians of Arcadia had all spent important moments on that ledge, he thought it fitting, that he spill his guts there. 

Steve started by repeating everything he had talked to Coach about, and Eli listened intently, both hands on the jock’s right arm.

“I am so sorry, Eli. So, so sorry! ...that I didn’t apologize for all this before, about how I treated you, about... not helping you when you needed it. I just kept making your situation worse. And I know you don’t hate me or anything, because you’re such a nice guy, but that doesn’t mean I don’t deserve it.”

“Steve, now you’re my best friend.” Eli almost whispered. “And I have never felt safer at school than when you are sitting with me and watching my back. Even with everything that’s happened, I don’t think I ever hated you. I think I was mostly confused as to why it was just me that you bullied… other than the fact that Toby wouldn’t exactly fit in a locker...”

“I am not going to blame my dad for everything… I mean it was me who chose to listen to him… but I think I also didn’t know how to handle having a crush on a guy.” Steve slowly tensed his back as he spoke, preparing for rejection. But Eli didn’t say anything, and when the blonde oaf looked over to said crush, the nerd’s glasses had fogged up in the rain, obscuring any chance of deciphering the dropped jaw expression. 

Panicking, Steve tried to say something else, to change the subject. He hadn’t noticed how furiously he was blushing until a chilled hand cupped his cheek. He turned back in time to see Eli abandoning his glasses on the rock next to them, his eyes now wide and watery.

“You had a crush on me?”

“I have a crush on you. Or… yeah I did, but I don’t think it’s just a crush anymore…”

“You like me?” Eli’s voice cracked, and suddenly Steve was no longer concerned with being embarrassed of himself, he just wanted his best friend to feel loved.

“I really, really like you… And I missed you while you were gone, and I don’t want you to go that far away for so long ever again.” He brushed a tear off the other boy’s cheek with his thumb, before Eli crumpled forward, hiding his face on Steve’s chest. He wrapped his arms around the smaller guy to keep him from slipping off the boulder. “I’m sorry. I understand if you don’t feel the same, I just wanted to make sure  _ you _ understood how I felt.”

Eli looked up, wiping the tears off his face, and suppressing a sniffle.

“Of  _ course  _ I like you back, buttsnack! Why do you think I never liked talking about you and Aja?”

“I just assumed it was because you were tired of straight couples… I mean we were being pretty gross about it.”

“True... but I was also kind of jealous. I had gotten so used to being the only one you hung out with so quickly that it kinda sucked when you suddenly kept secrets from me. I didn’t realize it was because I had feelings for you until you said you had doubts about her still wanting to date you.”

“Awh, man!” Steve slapped both hands over his face. “And I told you about all the mushy stuff I thought about her! I would have thought it was torture if we were reversed. I’m so sorry, Eli!”

“It’s okay.” Eli giggled. “I mean, it wasn’t… at the time, but it definitely is now.” Eli had to sit on one leg to be level with Steve, and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. Steve pulled his hands down, his eyes the size of saucers.

“Did you just…?” Is all he said before Eli leaned in again.

This time it was Steve who cupped Eli’s face and leaned back in return to kiss him.

It was almost too perfect. The smell of rain, the sound of it still falling through the trees. The twinkle of city lights from down below sparkling off the wet asphalt, lighting up the hill side under cozy gray clouds. Eli kept his hands on the other’s shoulders, trying to keep his balance, and Steve held him steady, and close. He could honestly say he couldn’t think of a time he had felt more like himself. When they reluctantly pulled back, they once again mirrored each other’s crazy bright grins.

“Does….” Steve said in a playful tone. “This mean I have a boyfriend now?”

“Only if I get one, too.” Smirked Eli. “We are partners after all.”

Steve laughed, hearing it eco off the forest behind them, and quickly kissed his boyfriend again.

As they walked back down the hillside, Eli took no shame in doing a little victory dance along the trail. Always running back to be picked up by  _ his _ lumbering oaf.

Whatever doomsday the Arcane Order had planned, didn’t matter.

Nothing could shatter the happiness between the two boys.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to give a shout out to my editor, @queersunflowers on Tumblr, for making sure my writing wasn't incoherent rambles of a mad man. She awesome... and my clone so...

**Author's Note:**

> Don't worry kiddos! I still have a couple spin-offs and one shots planned for BHLMP, just had to get these cuties out of my system first :)
> 
> Was thinking of making this a polycule, but writing Aja into it with my style seemed forced.


End file.
